The dangers of some contaminants are well known and have caused pandemics and death throughout history. In addition, they can create quality of life issues, for example, in allergy sufferers and in people with weakened immune systems. In today's mobile society, people are especially concerned about unfamiliar contaminants from across the world. For the purposes of this invention, a “contaminant” refers to that which on coming into contact with a surface will make it impure, unclean, or unfit and includes, but is not limited to, allergens, fungi, and bacteria. Some contaminants are harmful, while others are just undesirable. Contaminants may include, but are not limited to, those that are airborne and come in contact with a surface. A “decontaminant” is an agent that is substantially effective at cleaning, disinfecting, etc. the surfaces to at least temporarily eliminate contaminants.
An individual contaminates and is exposed to contaminants throughout the course of a day every time he or she touches or otherwise contacts a surface and every time someone around that person coughs or sneezes. An animal may also contaminate a surface. Once one surface is contaminated, cross-contamination onto other surfaces is all too common. Contaminants on surfaces, especially fabric surfaces, in addition to any health concerns, may also cause odors, stains, and deterioration of the surface.
As a result, people are concerned with eliminating contaminants. These concerns have caused the proliferation of decontaminants such as antibacterial soaps and cleansers. While contaminants can be easily removed from skin by washing the exposed area, the removal of contaminants from fabric surfaces is not so easy. Thorough cleaning of loose fabric surfaces typically requires machine washing or dry cleaning. Cleaning of fixed fabric surfaces such as on furniture usually requires the use of specialized equipment by specialists. These processes are time-consuming, inconvenient, and may be impractical on a regular basis. In addition, frequent washings cause overall deterioration of the fabric. For example, it is especially impractical to wash bulky coats, bedspreads, furniture coverings or the like on a daily basis yet these articles are exposed to contaminants on a regular basis, especially those used in a public venue such as a hospital, nursing home, train, restaurant, hotel, airplane, or the like. Even when dry cleaned or washed in a public venue, cross-contamination from the dry cleaners or public venue may occur.
Accordingly, there exists a need for novel devices and methods that are easy to use, portable, convenient, relatively quick, substantially safe for fabrics and effective at eliminating contaminants, relatively inexpensive, can treat a substantially large surface area with uniform application. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.